West Palm Mayor Jeri Muoio faced reporters Wednesday about the growing Digital Domain controversy: the highly vaunted animation studio bankrupt, the prime downtown land the city gave it now being fought over by creditors in bankruptcy court and a $2 million payment to the company now gone.

"Digital Domain knows that we should get the land back," Muoio said. "It's just a matter of letting the legal process run its course. Remember, it has only been eight days (since Digital Domain filed for bankruptcy)."

Muoio said getting the downtown land back, valued at about $10 million, is the first priority. The mayor said she has a team of financial experts and attorneys working on the problem daily. She said those attorneys tell her the "reverter" agreement the city had with Digital Domain should give the city precedence over the other 140 creditors trying to get repaid by the company.

Muoio also answered criticisms brought by residents at Monday's City Council meeting that the city gambled with taxpayer money, that it rushed to give Digital Domain a deal without fully checking into the company that was hurtling toward bankruptcy even while it was romancing the city.

"This was a highly vetted project, and we have stacks and stacks of data, of financials, of legal opinions (and) of outside opinions," Muoio said. "There was no gambling here. We had made a considered decision to move forward with this."

Muoio said she spoke Tuesday with the president of Florida State University, who is interested in keeping the university's film school going. FSU partnered with Digital Domain to create an animation program based in West Palm Beach. She said classes for the 27 students currently enrolled would continue.

The mayor also said she considered the $2 million given to Digital Domain a "good investment" because the city still has the film school, which she said will be an economic spark by attracting other similar businesses.